During performances by marching bands, musicians are often required to arrange themselves quickly into performance position. For example, performances often occur during intermission of half-time of sporting events. In such instances, the musicians must perform on the same field on which the sporting event takes places and within strictly confined time constrains and space limitations. Furthermore, such performances often require the musicians to complete complex, choreographed movements. As a result, there is a need for musicians to be able to transport themselves and their instruments to various locations within a short period of time while not significantly disrupting the ability of the musicians to perform.
Hand-held musical instruments are particularly suitable for such performances because they can be transported quickly and easily by the respective musicians. For example, band members can quickly and easily carry trumpets and trombones while entering or exiting a performance location, as well as during formation changes. Other types of instruments, however, cannot be transported or otherwise set up as easily. For example, percussion instruments are often of such a size, dimension, and weight that they cannot be carried directly by the musician. Instead, separate transportation means are required to move the instruments into place.
Current devices used to transport percussion-type instruments, such as timpanis, have a number of drawbacks. Notable among these drawbacks is that even after the instruments are transported to a particular location, additional set-up may be required before a musician can properly use the instruments during a performance. This is because the instruments are frequently configured to optimize mobility of the transportations means, rather than performance positioning, during transportation. As a result, percussion instruments like timpanis may require a significant repositioning and set-up upon arrival at the performance location. For example, it may be necessary to first remove the instruments from the vehicle used to transport them, place them on a new surface, and finally reconfigure them into relative positions that optimize the musician's ability to perform.
Such positioning may require the instruments to be removed from the transportation means and configured into a performance position directly on the performance terrain or on a separate playing stage. In either instance, a certain amount of set-up is required, during which time the instruments cannot be played and the performance may be delayed. Similarly, the required take-down required for removal of the instruments can further reduce the amount of time available for playing the particular instruments and for the performance as a whole. In addition, the positioning of the instruments onto the performance site or a separate playing stage substantially reduces the ability of the instruments to be moved during the performance. As a result, the ability of marching bands to assume new formations and perform maneuvers during performances can be further limited.
Timpanis in particular present unique set-up challenges because optimal performance positioning typically requires at least four differently sized timpanis to be positioned in a V-shape. This allows the musician to position himself or herself “inside” the V-shaped array of timpanis for quick and efficient access to each respective timpani for performance purposes. In addition, it is generally preferable that the surfaces on which the musician stands and the timpanis rest be level.
A drawback of current systems used to transport timpanis and other percussion-type instruments is the extensive set-up and take-down required for proper positioning and subsequent removal of the instruments. For example, the instruments must first be removed from the vehicle, properly positioned on the performance surface, and subsequently re-loaded onto the transport vehicle once the performance has concluded. The size and weight of most timpanis make this a physically demanding process. In addition, the frequent removal and re-loading of timpanis off of and onto the transport vehicle can increase the likelihood of damage to the timpanis, reduce the amount of time available to musicians for performing, and virtually ensure that the relative positions of the timpanis in a V-shaped orientation cannot be precisely replicated. Furthermore, unlevel surfaces can create adverse performance conditions and thereby increase the difficulty of performing and reduce the overall performance quality.
Therefore, there is a need for a convertible percussion cart-platform system that addresses the aforementioned drawbacks.